2 bed flat with 2 young children

[peanutbutterontoast7]

I just wondered if there was anyone on her who had a 2 bed flat with 2 young children (single parent so only one adult) and how they found the space/quality of living.
I'm aware that all flats are different sizes etc so it's a bit of a strange question but I am just after some real experience.
Been offered a 2 bed flat via social housing. I know nothing about the size of the rooms etc so I have no idea what to expect. I know this is all I'm entitled to. I am very greatful for the offer! But I am just wondering how realistic is living comfortably in a 2 bed flat?

@emmathedilemma that's tiny! My flat is:

Kitchen 4x3
Bedroom 1 with built in wardrobe 4x4
Bedroom 2 with built in wardrobe 4x3
Living room 4x4.5
Bathroom 2x2.5
Hall with cupboard 4.5x1.2

So a really good size but the space could have been used better with more thought given to layout & placement of doors, wardrobes, radiators, windows & the boiler (whose pipes take up a whole kitchen cupboard).

Not all flats have shared gardens though. Round my way, most flats are part of a pair (tyneside flats) each with own entrance and own back yard.

Yeah I know, I'm just saying if it's a shared one, it would sway by decision.

The lack of garden does of course disappoint me but my parents have a large garden and there's a park and big field close by.
I'm more concerned about the bedroom sizes and how we will fit wardrobes etc 😬

I've in a 2 bed house with 2 dc, 5 and 7. The rooms are quite big though. Take it, social housing is so scarce you'd be mad not to. Are uou on the general register or homeless?

@JenniferWooley it's not that tiny, just because your flat is bigger! It's 2 double bedrooms and they've got 2 big sofas, an armchair, footstool and coffee table in the living room and there's still plenty of space in it. They've better floor space than a lot of new build houses.

This probably sounds mad to most, but I would rather live in a flat than a house. I've lived in a few of each, and my happiest times were warm, snug and safe in an upstairs flat and worst, with all kinds of problems in a house with a garden. I am hoping my next move will be to a flat. I don't like gardening, have nosey neighbours who make it unpleasant to spend time outside but absolutely love people watching in parks. It really depends on you. I would want to know there was adequate parking though.

@Bemyclementine I'm on the general register! I'm on band c but I've been bidding for 3 years and this is my first offer. Apparently the waiting list is around 8 years for a house!

@peanutbutterontoast7 Looking forwards to updates! I hope it's just what you want. :-)

Depends on how big the flat is... I'm a single mum with a boy (11) and girl (8). We live in a 2 bed flat, and the kids share a room. They love it and miss the other if one is not at home!

That doesn't seem that small to me. My house is only 70m2. Each floor is 35m2. We've got 3 bedrooms for that space but one bedroom is the box room, with the stairwell bunk head in it so small.

We do have an attic and a garden. If you rented a garage that would be the equivalent to our attic.

We moved here from a one bedroom flat. The flat was much bigger! We had to get rid of furniture.

The layout might mean the space is flexible. I'm sure it will be fine.

Take it!

A flat is definitely doable.
i moved from a 1 bed flat to a 2 bed house- I miss my massive living room and kitchen!
lack of garden can be a pain with little ones but if there are open spaces nearby you can adapt.
just make sure you’re organised

turning down social housing would be a mistake, it will be a secure tenancy after a year and affordable rent compared to private.
they will allow you to view before you have to decide though

My friend lined in a one bed council flat. It was larger than my two bed terraced house!

If the waiting time is that long I'd take it. With the children so young you could have one large wardrobe in your room to keep everyone's clothes in. They could have a bunk bed with a chest of drawers in their room

@emmathedilemma I mean tiny as in I find my flat overcrowded & claustrophobic when I have both DD & DS here as there doesn't seem to be enough room to move around each other no matter what room we are in & I'm aware my flat is considered to be a decent size so I couldn't imagine how horrible it would feel in anything smaller.

My flat is relatively new (about 10 years old) but I'd much rather have an older property with bigger rooms & decent storage space like those I lived in growing up - we had mum, dad, 4 boys & 2 girls in a standard council 3-bed terrace & it never felt as cramped as my flat does with 3 people in it.

So ag the minute I live at my parents and the house is big, however, Obviously it isn't my house. I can't move things around or decorate as I would. We have our 2 bedrooms and we use one of the reception rooms as we wish (but it's filled with my parents furniture so extremely limited) and share the kitchen and bathrooms. There's more space to walk around and live in but it's not our space to use as we want and I'm starting to feel really suffocated! Does that make sense?
I just wish I knew more about this flat so I knew whether to get excited or not!

@mamabear715 aww thank you! I rang them today to see if I could get any further details and they said that it is being re wired and the radiators moved so they don't have any more details or an idea when I can view! I'm not in a massive rush and want to take them time I need to look round and make a decision, I just wish I knew abit more :)

Ooh, @peanutbutterontoast7 so hopefully there'll be no major work to be done, just decoration etc? I am excited for you! :-)
I can imagine the current 'suffocated' feeling, can't wait for you to get your very own place, whether it's this one or not (but I hope it is!)

I’ve done this. Give the bigger bedroom (if there is one) to the kids.

We’re expecting our second child and live in a 2 bed flat so this thread is interesting to read. We can’t move right now for various reasons so we need to make it work. We’ve been having a huge clear out recently and really just gone down to the basics. We’ve changed some of our storage to be more efficient too (floor to ceiling instead of just halfway up the wall type thing). A garden would be great but we do have an ok size balcony which makes a difference. We have lived in houses and I honestly love being on one level. It’s so much easier to tidy and clean!

We’re currently in a two bed flat with three children. They don’t mind sharing and though it’s messy, it doesn’t feel cramped because it’s a large two bed and we have a garage. We’re on the ground floor and have massive gorgeous communal gardens. All our neighbours have kids and we all just sit out in the gardens whilst the children play. So the massive gardens feel like a huge extension of our flat.

The kids have bunk beds and a cabin bed. Their room is perma-messy because on account of all their stuff being in one room with them but we have loads of built in storage and the flat is like a massive square divide into four - all four rooms (apart from the bathroom) are massive and of equal size.

It’s obviously far from ideal but it’s a case of needs just right now. We bought the flat the month before lockdown and intended to be here for five years and then hopefully move to a 3 bed house. But Covid well and truly fucked our finances and now high interest rates and inflation make it look likely we’ll have to stay a couple more years after the five year fix we had in place comes to an end. I’m just grateful we completed and it’s ours after decades of renting.

MN has a certain kind of snobbery about kids sharing a room - 3 kids in one room must seem positively Dickensian! - but we’re all just trying to get on and do our best. Our kids are happy and loved and don’t want for much and are very close siblings, and I’m sure it’ll be the same for you OP. Congratulations on your new home!

Of course it’s fine. We live in a flat, our neighbours had 3 boys under 8 in a 2 bed. Mum and dad one room , boys all shared. They moved to a house when eldest 8. I really don’t see it as a problem, millions of people live in flats with children sharing.I would be more concerned as to whether it is a good location

The location is great! It's not on an estate but a lovely road instead. I was also told that the last time there was an opening in the block (it's only 3 stories high) was 7 years ago so sounds like people are settled there.
I just worry about wardrobes and storage most of all but I suppose I will just have to wait and see!
I would absolutely take the smaller room of it works!

@peanutbutterontoast7 I work in housing, thr policy here us that you can have 3 refusals if you're on the general register. I have to say though, 1 vacancy in 7 years I'd take it with both hands! That's a real rarity.

@Bemyclementine that's what worries me! Grasp firmly!